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October 2011

10/25/2011

The state of Arizona started a wave of anti-immigration laws which have been replicated by four (4) states to date. In response to the enactment of these laws, many organizations and individuals have taken decisive action to indicate that there is no place in a free nation for “show me your papers” laws. The ACLU and other national advocacy organizations remind us that that these anti-immigration laws[i] — already signed in Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Georgia and Alabama[ii] — pose a grave threat to our civil liberties.

It is the ACLU’s assertion that these “show me your papers” laws which were passed in Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Georgia and Alabama intrude on the federal government’s immigration authority and institutionalize racial profiling and discrimination in states and localities throughout the nation — in direct violation of the Constitution’s Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments. As a result, the ACLU has brought class action suits to halt this wave of anti-immigration laws and is urging the Department of Justice to take immediate action to challenge these laws in court.

In July of this year, I wrote about Alabama’s anti-immigration law because it was termed the strictest anti-immigrant law in the nation. There is great opposition to the law not only within that state but also across our nation. Alabama’s anti-immigration law, HB56, took effect in September of 2011. Before the law could go into effect, the American Civil Liberties Union, along with the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Immigration Law Center, the Asian American Justice Center and the Asian Law Caucus filed a class action lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Alabama’s anti-immigrant law (HB56)[iii]. After the suit was filed in this case a press release was sent out by the ACLU which read:

“Alabama has brazenly enacted this law despite the clear writing on the wall: Federal courts have stopped each and every one of these discriminatory laws from going into effect,” said Cecilia Wang, director of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “Local Alabama communities and people across the country are shocked and dismayed by the state’s effort to erode our civil rights and fundamental American values.”

Many community leaders oppose the anti-immigration law for a range of reasons. “This legislation not only violates our values as a community but will also create astronomical costs at a time when our state can least afford it,” said Shay Farley, Legal Director, Alabama Appleseed. “If these legislators have their way, millions of taxpayer dollars will be squandered and our already underwater state economy will take another serious hit.”

In response to the class action suit brought by the ACLU against the State of Alabama, on September 28, 2011, a federal court judge issued a ruling in that case. Here are comments from the ACLU on the court’s ruling in that case, as they appear in the press release, “While the court has blocked some extremely problematic provisions from going into effect, thereby allowing Alabamians to continue engaging in everyday activities such as seeking employment and giving rides to neighbors, we are deeply concerned by the decision to allow some unconstitutional provisions to stand,” said Andre Segura, staff attorney with the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “Laws that require police to demand ‘papers’ from people who they suspect appear undocumented encourage racial profiling, threaten public safety, undermine American values and have no place in our society.”

With that said, the ACLU is continuing the fight to halt the wave of racial profiling laws via filing law suits and other advocacy efforts. Currently, it is requesting that the Obama administration do its part to stop the anti-immigrant activists from putting these laws on the books. To assist in this effort to get Justice Department involvement in this issue, the ACLU is asking each of us to, Tell Attorney General Holder: There is no place in our country for “show me your papers” laws. Toward that goal the ACLU prepared a petition which appears on its website. Please join me in signing and circulating the petition entitled “No place in America for “show me your papers” laws!”.

For further information about anti-immigration laws, visit the website(s) for the Southern Poverty Law Center, the ACLU, the National Immigration Law Center, the National Immigration Forum, or the Asian American Justice Center.

[i] .Alabama is the fifth state to pass anti-immigration law. Some opponents of the law have deemedAlabama’s anti-immigration law to be the most comprehensive/extreme in the nation. To date, the anti-immigration laws have not been fully implemented due to legal challenges by a coalition of national advocacy organizations. The coalition members include: the ACLU, the National Immigration Law Center, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Asian Law Caucus, the Asian American Justice Center, Latino Justice PRLDEF, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network.

[ii] It has been reported that the Alabama anti-immigration bill (HB 56) replicates some portions ofArizona’s anti-immigration law. As it was written,Alabama’s anti-immigration law:

Allows local law enforcement to demand papers from and detain those they believe are in the country illegally.

Makes it a crime for undocumented immigrants to hold a job in Alabama, and make it a crime for any immigrant in the state to be caught without documentation proving status.

Makes it illegal to sign a contract with undocumented immigrants, to knowingly rent property to them, to knowingly hire them for jobs.

Requires businesses to use E-Verify, the government database of names, to check employees’ legal status.

Mandates that parents report the immigration status of their children to public schools to assist the schools to: maintain legal status records on all their students; and document the costs of educating undocumented children.

[iii] The decision in this case came down at the end of September of this year.

10/15/2011

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM). In recognition of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, this blog post seeks to: raise awareness about the prevalence of this pressing public health issue; delineate steps you can take to support a victim of domestic violence; and provide you with a course of action to help eradicate domestic violence.

For far too many women violence and danger are their constant companions. Despite concerted efforts to eradicate domestic violence, data indicates that intimate partner violence continues to pose a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of countless persons. Social science research indicates that one (1) in four (4) women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. [i] Indigent women are more vulnerable.

On average, more than three (3) women a day are murdered by their intimate partners in our country [ii]. Annually, women experience an estimated two (2) million women injuries resulting from an abusive relationship.[iii] Women who are between the ages of 20-24 years old are at the greatest risk of nonfatal intimate partner violence.[iv] Research indicates that most incidents of domestic violence are not reported to the police. [v] The dearth of safe, decent, affordable housing causes many poor women to confront the unenviable choice of homelessness or remaining in a home plagued by violence and turmoil resulting from domestic violence.

If someone you know is being abused, the National Domestic Violence Hotline recommends that you do the following:

Listen to the victim. Tell the victim, “I believe you.”

Acknowledge the abuse and that the behavior is inappropriate. Tell the victim, “No one deserves to be abused.”

Respect the victim’s choices. Tell the victim, “It’s important for you to make decisions that are best for you.”

Be supportive—if the victim wants to file a police report and/or a restraining order offer to accompany them. Tell the victim, “You are NOT alone.”

Provide encouragement to the victim that might be feeling hopeless. Tell the victim, “The National Domestic Violence Hotline is anonymous and confidential and provides information and referrals. The telephone number for the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233. You could call them for help.”

Domestic violence thrives on apathy and ignorance. It can be eradicated with an equal amount of conscience, mind, heart, and collective action. According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, here is a list of additional ways that you can help eradicate domestic: share domestic violence resources with a victim of abuse; volunteer at a domestic violence agency; speak out against domestic violence; donate money and/or items to your local domestic violence organization; donate your old cell telephone and its accessories via Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine; and encourage your community to support domestic violence services as well as hold perpetrators accountable for their illegal behavior.

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[i] Tjaden, Patricia & Thoennes, Nancy, National Institute of Justice and the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 1993, “Extent, Nature and Consequences of Intimate Partner Violence: Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey,” (2000).

[ii] U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Intimate Partner Violence in the United States, December 2006.

Tell your members of congress that you care about working families and so should they. As you seen with the on-going federal budget battles, essential programs for low-income and vulnerable people are threatened with cuts: Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP/food stamps, and unemployment benefits. These cuts will make things worse, not better. Countless families will be hurt by cuts in these very necessary programs for low and moderate income person. Additionally, ore jobs will be lost in a period of record unemployment.

As I have indicated in my blog posts on the economy, our nation needs a prudent economic plan that will put us on the right track by investing in jobs, protecting low income people, sharing the burden by asking top-income households and profitable corporations to contribute more revenue, and reducing waste elsewhere. It is apparent from the raging federal budget discussions in order for that to occur ourUS Senators andUSRepresentatives need to hear from us that there must be shared sacrifice. Toward that goal, 9 to 5 prepared a simple script on how to reach and speak with your congress persons about saving very necessary programs for families which is provided below.1. “To reach your members of congress you can dial this toll-free number: 1-888-907-1485.

2. Follow the instructions and you’ll be connected to your Senators and Rep. Here’s a message you can use:

Hi, my name is ____ and I am from (city, state).

I know that a Select Committee is working on a plan to reduce the federal deficit. No plan can work if it does not protect Medicaid, food stamps, unemployment insurance and other basic safety net programs.

And it must create jobs. The plan must have increase revenue from upper-income households and profitable corporations, and savings from cutting unneeded military spending.

I urge [Rep or Senator ___] to work with the Select Committee to develop such a plan, and to reject proposals that harm the poor and stall economic recovery."

"It’s easy to think of a million reasons why you don’t want to call. You may think they don’t pay attention. But they do – when people showed up in town meetings across the country this summer insisting that Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security be protected, and some cuts were beaten back. But they’re not done – and neither are those who are using the deficit as an excuse to slash services and shrink government."

"So please join people of faith, service providers, advocates for children and seniors, working and jobless people and call Congress on October 4 and 5: Toll-free number: 1-888-907-1485."

"We need jobs! We don’t want to hurt the most vulnerable. Slashing funding for much needed services will put a slam on the brakes on our economic recovery. With fair revenues and military and other savings, we can reduce the deficit the right way.”

10/09/2011

With the growing prevalence of the Internet and online social networks, cyber bullying, cyber stalking, and cyber harassment have become ever growing phenomena. For some, it took the tragic deaths of countless victims such as Phoebe Prince, Hope Witsell, Ryan Halligan, Tiffany Barwick, Tyler Clementi, and Megan Meier to bring these issues into the public conscientiousness. This post will focus on cyber bullying. Cyber bullying occurs between minors. When an adult is harassing children or teenagers, it is known as cyber harassment or cyber stalking. As the Internet becomes more popular and online communities become more close-knit as well as more prevalent, online misconduct is occurring at an ever increasing rate in cyber space.

What constitutes Cyber bullying?Cyber bullying has been defined by some experts as a willful and repeated act where a child or teenager is harassed, humiliated, embarrassed, threatened or tormented through the use of digital technology such as computers, cell telephones, and other electronic devices. It is not limited to the Internet; cyber bullying also encompasses bullying done through such methods as text messages. It is important to reiterate that experts state that cyber bullying can only occur between minors. Research data indicates that cyber bullying can be just as devastating as bullying in real life. In some cases, cyber bullying is an extension of bullying already endured by the victim at school.

Cyber bullying is often a systemic attempt to cause another person to experience emotional pain as the result of an electronic communication or a series of communications. Traditionally, it occurs more than once, and includes but is not limited to: creating disturbing blog and website posts; leaving demeaning messages on victim’s Facebook or MySpace page; spreading gossip or rumors through instant messaging and text messaging; uploading embarrassing photos of the victim; and/or sending defamatory tweets on Twitter. Bullies have demonstrated that there are countless methods to humiliate and threaten a child or teen online. Because the damage is often psychological, and carries over into the real world, the threats posed by cyber bullying can be devastating for the victim. There have been cases where cyber bullying has been linked to severe depression, self-harm, and even suicide.

Prevalence of Teens and Cyber bullyingResearch indicates that electronic dating violence and teens is a significant social problem. The Cyberbullying Research Center reported that an online survey of teens sponsored by the Liz Claiborne company revealed that 36% of teens say their boyfriend or girlfriend checked up on them as many as 30 times per day and 17% reported that their significant other made them afraid not to respond to cell phone calls, email, or text messages. Another recent poll spearheaded by MTV and the Associated Press found that 22% of youth between the ages of 14 and 24 who were involved in a romantic relationship said that their partner wrote something about them online or in a text message that was not true. (Cyberbullying Research Center) This same survey reported that 22% of youth felt that their significant other checked up on them too often online or via cell phone. (Cyberbullying Research Center). The results of these studies referenced on the Center’s website illustrate that electronic dating violence is occurring across a meaningful proportion of youth in our nation.

In response to this pressing problem, the Obama administration has taken important and necessary measures to combat bullying. His administration is directing resources for the express purpose of reducing bullying in schools and to raising awareness around its ramifications, and, of course, to countering its negative impact. Toward that end, the White House convened a conference on preventing bullying, on Thursday, March 11, 2011. The Obama administration also launched a new website, www.stopbullying.gov, devoted to bullying prevention.

For further information on bullying and/or cyber bullying prevention and intervention strategies, there are several websites you can visit including but not limited: www.fightcrime.org; www.bullypolice.org; www.healthline.com; www.cyberbullying.us; www.stopbullying.org; www.stopbullying.gov; www.isafe.org; and others.

10/02/2011

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Cancer still attacks 10,000,000 people per year worldwide. Annually, 1.3 million Americans are diagnosed with cancer and nearly 555,000 people will die in our nation this year alone. According to the CDC, breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women.

In 2006 (the most recent year numbers are available)—• 191,410 women were diagnosed with breast cancer.*†• 40,820 women died from breast cancer.*†If you are concerned about developing breast cancer, or if you know someone who has been diagnosed with the disease, one way to deal with your concerns is to gather as much information as is available. For more information, you can visit the websites for: American Cancer Society, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and the National Cancer Institute.†Source: U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. United States Cancer Statistics: 1999–2006 Incidence and Mortality Web-based Report. Atlanta (GA): Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and National Cancer Institute; 2010. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/uscs.*Note: Incidence counts cover approximately 96% of the U.S. population and death counts cover 100% of the U.S. population. Use caution in comparing incidence and death counts.Photo Credit Microsoft Clip

10/01/2011

This spring, the U.S. House of Representatives proposed cuts to the Women, Infants, and Children nutrition and health program (WIC). WIC provides much-needed health care and nutrition support for some of our most vulnerable families, including pregnant or breastfeeding women, infants, and children under the age of five years old.

Hunger in America is prevalent. Hunger poses a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of an ever-increasing number of infants and children. According to the WIC website, “…[when] WIC was permanently authorized, 88,000 people participated. By 1980, participation was at 1.9 million; by 1985, 3.1 million; by 1990, 4.5 million; and by 2000, 7.2 million. Average monthly participation for FY 2008 was about 8.7 million. Children have always been the largest group of WIC participants. Of the 8.7 million people who received WIC benefits each month in FY 2008, about 4.33 million were children, 2.22 million were infants, and 2.15 million were women.”[i] Estimates from The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities show that funding WIC at the US House proposed low-level would result in eliminating 200,000 to 350,000 eligible low-income women and young children from WIC next year.[ii] It is a well-known fact that proper nutrition is vital to the growth and development of healthy children thus highlighting the need for continued funding for feeding programs such as WIC.

On May 31, 2011, in response to the devastating funding cuts proposed by House Republicans, U.S. Rep. George Miller(D-CA), senior Democrat on the Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement about the proposed cuts to the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP).[iii] These cuts further the attack on poor and working class Americans outlined in the FY12 Republican budget which proposes to severely cut funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, by $127 billion over ten years. [iv]

“House Republicans are trying to deny low-income mothers access to healthy food options. Their priorities are sorely misplaced. They push for tax cuts for big oil companies and threaten families with the greatest needs in this economy. If children don’t develop healthy habits early, if they don’t have enough food, they can struggle in the classroom and in life."

“Just a short time ago, President Obama signed into law transformational legislation that will dramatically improve school meals and other child nutrition programs. We came together in a bipartisan way to pass this legislation, to cut hunger and improve the meals our children eat in and out of school. And now, the House Republicans would reverse the progress made and threaten the mothers, families and children who rely on WIC on a daily basis. “It is absolutely necessary to take a long hard look at government spending to avoid wasting any taxpayers’ dollars, but time and time again, Republicans wrongfully make their cuts on the backs of poor and working class Americans.”[v] For more information on WIC, visit the WIC website at www.fns.usda.gov.”

After a valiant effort to halt his execution, on Wednesday, September 21, 2011, at 11:15PM, people from all around the world said goodbye to Troy Davis, a death row inmate, in the state of Georgia’s penal system. As was aptly stated by Edward Dubose, Georgia State Conference, President of the NAACP, “Troy’s execution, and the exceptional unfairness of it amidst so much doubt, has galvanized a global movement in his name. Troy’s is remembered not only because of the circumstances around his case, but because even in the face of death he understood that his story had the potential to change this country forever. There is much work ahead to ensure the end of the death penalty in the United States, but we will do it together, and we will do it in Troy’s name.”

On Saturday October 1, 2011, Troy Davis will be buried in Savannah, Georgia. People from all over: the state of Georgia, the United States, and the world will be in attendance. The Davis family remains in countless hearts and prayers during this incredibly heartbreaking and hard period in our nation’s history. The services below are open to the public, but cameras and video recorders will not be permitted:

Friday, September 30th, 2011

Wake and Memorial Service

6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

New Life Apostolic Temple

2120 West Bay Street

Savannah, Georgia 31415

Saturday, October 1, 2011

“Celebration of Life Service” (Funeral)

11 a.m.

Jonesville Baptist Church

5201 Montgomery St,

Savannah, Georgia 31415

If you will be unable to attend, you can send a letter of condolence to the Davis Family. The letters to the Davis should be sent to:

“I am Troy Davis”

P.O.Box 2105

Savannah,GA 31407

In lieu of flowers, donations may be mailed to:

I AM TROY FUND

CapitolCity Bank

339 MLK, Jr., Blvd.

Savannah,Georgia 31401

Troy’s story touched countless hearts and minds. When commenting on Troy Davis’ execution, Larry Cox, Amnesty International executive director, offered that, importantly, the massive movement that developed around this case offers an opportunity to question this country’s values. This tragedy offers a chance to engage more people who are repulsed that the state would murder in our names and yet remain silent about it. “We have to take people who were against the death penalty and never did anything about it,” Larry Cox told Amy Goodman of Democracy NOW, and mobilize them. “Now is the time.”

As Kai Wright and Jamilah King wrote in their provocative and thought-provoking article entitled “The Long, Murderous Arm of the Law Has Killed Troy Davis” in Colorlines, “Davis’ case offers a bracing and depressing illustration of capital punishment’s many problems.” In the State of Georgia’s “…eagerness to prosecute a black man, [Troy Davis], for murdering a white police officer, [Mark Allen MacPhail], local officials set in motion a killing machine that, once turned on, is near impossible to halt without executive intervention. Much has already been written about the details of Davis’s case; no reasonable observer can deny there is significant doubt as to his guilt. But our criminal justice system is anything but reasonable. Those who don’t come into contact with it can sit in self-satisfied assurance that our cops and courts measure out blind justice that keeps society well ordered. The evidence simply does not support that fantasy, as Davis’s life and death so dreadfully illustrate. In fact, if we are to judge our criminal justice system by its outcomes, it is built to round up masses of black men, transfer public funds to privatecompanies to warehouse them, and then kill them in cold blood.”

With that said, here are three (3) important things you can do RIGHT NOW to advance the fight to stop the death penalty:

1) Sign the pledge (NAACP and/or Amnesty International) and join the movement to eradicate death penalty.

2) Contact your local Amnesty International State Death Penalty Abolition Coordinators (pdf). Ask about the death penalty in your state and how you can get involved locally.

3) Reach out to other death penalty organizations operating in your state/country. Find out more information.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, aside from skin cancer. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), an estimated 192,370 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed among women in the United States this year. An estimated 40,170 women are expected to die from the disease in 2009 alone. Today, there are about 2.5 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States.

Note: The numbers in parentheses are the rates per 100,000 women of all races and Hispanic origins combined in the United States.